These 87 Items Qualify as HSA-Eligible Expenses for 2025
Key takeaways:
Health savings accounts (HSAs) allow you to use pretax dollars to pay for qualified medical expenses, which lets you save money on everyday healthcare items.
Your HSA can help you cover qualified emergency, dental, vision, and family medical expenses.
The CARES Act has expanded the list of HSA-eligible items to include over-the-counter (OTC) purchases such as allergy, cough, and cold medications.
Table of contents
A health savings account (HSA) is a tax-exempt account set up to offset the cost of healthcare. You must have a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) to open an HSA. Every dollar that you contribute to an HSA can pay for eligible medical expenses. When you withdraw money from the account, you won’t have to pay taxes on the funds as long as they are used for HSA-eligible expenses.
Below, we’ll explain how to use an HSA and provide you with 87 HSA-eligible expenses for 2025.
How do you use an HSA?
An HSA is a flexible account to help you manage your healthcare expenses. When you enroll in an HSA through your employer, your contributions are typically made with pretax dollars. If you contribute to your HSA with after-tax dollars — which is usually the case if you are self-employed — you’ll receive a deduction when you file your tax return. As long as the money is used for eligible medical expenses, you won’t have to worry about paying taxes on it later.
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To get the most out of your HSA, make sure you log in regularly to review your account balance and track expenses. Many HSA providers also offer an HSA benefits card, which works like a debit card for eligible purchases. Before spending, check with your HSA administrator to ensure your expense qualifies.
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What can you buy with your HSA?
You can use your HSA to purchase a wide range of qualified medical expenses that are not covered by your health insurance or reimbursed by another plan. Expenses that qualify for the medical- and dental-expense deduction meet the criteria. The main purpose of the expense must be to ease or prevent a physical or mental illness.
Below are common categories of eligible expenses.
1. Common or routine medical expenses
Annual exams
Baby ointment
Band-Aids
Breathing strips
Breast milk storage bags and bottles
Breast pumps
Certain types of lip balm
Certain types of sunscreen
Copays for prescriptions and office visits
Crutches
Dental care (See below)
Diaper-rash cream
Nursing pads
Pedialyte
Prescription medications
Vision care (See below)
Wheelchairs
X-rays
2. COVID PPE supplies
The IRS issued Announcement 2021-7 to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. This added personal protective equipment (PPE) used to prevent the spread of the coronavirus as a qualified expense. It also made the following items HSA-eligible expenses:
Hand sanitizer
Masks
Sanitizing wipes
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3. Menstrual products and OTC medications
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act also added some medical expenses to the list. The new items added were menstrual products and over-the-counter (OTC) medications.
The following 18 items are examples of now-qualified medical expenses:
Acetaminophen (Tylenol)
Heartburn medications
Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin)
Liners
Menstrual cups
Nasal sprays
Pads
Period panties
Sleep aids
Tampons
Thermometers
Tums (calcium carbonate)
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4. Family planning products
Your HSA can also pay for family planning healthcare expenses, such as:
Contraceptives
Infertility treatments
Ovulation monitors
Pregnancy tests
Tubal ligations
5. Emergency medical expenses
These eight emergency medical expenses may also be covered by your HSA:
EMS devices
Medical records fees
Urgent care services
6. Mental health expenses
Studies show that almost a quarter of U.S. adults experienced a mental illness in 2022. If you need to pay for mental health expenses out of pocket, your HSA may cover the following:
Mental health counseling
Transportation to mental health appointments
7. Dental care
HSA holders can use their accounts to pay for care given by an orthodontist, dental hygienist, or dentist. This includes but is not limited to the following nine dental care items and services:
Dental implants for a restorative procedure
Dental X-rays
Orthodontist visits
Teeth whitening is not covered, since it is considered a cosmetic dental procedure and not health-related.
8. Vision care
Before scheduling your next vision appointment, it’s important to understand which expenses are covered by insurance. You can typically use your HSA to cover out-of-pocket payments for the following eight vision expenses:
Contact lens cases
Contact lens cleaning solution
Eye drops
Eye exams
Eyeglass cases
If you are visually impaired or blind and have a guide dog, here are some additional HSA-eligible expenses:
Buying a guide dog to assist with daily activities
Training a guide dog
Visiting the vet
Are dependent care expenses HSA-eligible?
If you have a dependent care flexible spending account (dependent care FSA), you can use the funds in the account to pay for qualified child and dependent care expenses tax-free. The IRS has specific criteria that you must meet for eligible expenses, including the expenses being necessary to allow you to actively look for work or allow you to work.
Eligible expenses may include the following if they meet certain criteria:
Adult daycare
Babysitting
Before- and after-school care
Day camp
Although you can contribute to an HSA and a dependent care FSA at the same time, you cannot use the funds in an HSA for dependent care expenses.
Are all qualified medical expenses HSA-eligible?
No. For example, insurance premiums may not always be considered a qualified expense. You can only use your HSA to pay for insurance premiums if they fall into one of these four categories:
Healthcare continuation coverage (coverage under COBRA)
Healthcare coverage while receiving federal or state unemployment
Medicare and other health coverage if you are 65 or older
An example of an insurance premium you cannot claim is Medicare supplemental insurance, such as Medigap.
What common healthcare expenses are not HSA-eligible?
Preventive care that is not prescribed by a healthcare professional is not always HSA-eligible. Some examples of common healthcare expenses that fall into this category are:
Personal hygiene items, such as toothpaste and deodorant
Vitamins and nutritional and herbal supplements for general health
Weight-loss programs for general health or well-being
But there is an exception. If you have a doctor’s note — also called a letter of medical necessity (LOMN) — you may be able to buy items that typically wouldn’t be HSA-eligible. The LOMN briefly outlines your condition and why you need a specific product or service.
The following are three expenses that may qualify for the exception. These items may qualify if they are used to treat a medical condition. Before you purchase an item, check with your HSA administrator to determine if your expense is HSA-eligible with a LOMN.
Health clubs
Weight-loss programs
Do expenses for spouses and dependents go toward your HSA?
You can pay for qualified medical expenses for your spouse with your HSA. You can also pay for the medical expenses of any dependents claimed on your tax return with your HSA, as long as they meet the following criteria:
The dependent cannot file a “married filing jointly” return.
Their gross income cannot exceed the annual threshold.
Neither you nor your spouse can be considered a dependent on someone else’s return.
What are the HSA limits for 2025?
Each year, the IRS raises the HSA contribution limit to keep up with inflation. The 2025 contribution caps increased by $150 for individuals and $250 for families.
The table below shows the HSA contribution limits based on your age and coverage type. If you are 55 or older, you can contribute an extra $1,000 to your HSA. This is called a catch-up contribution. So people who meet the age requirement can contribute up to $5,300 as an individual or $9,550 for a family plan in 2025.
Year | Individual | Family | Catch-up contribution (55 and over) |
|---|---|---|---|
2025 | $4,300 | $8,550 | $1,000 |
2024 | $4,150 | $8,300 | $1,000 |
Source: IRS
To take advantage of the 87 HSA-eligible expenses mentioned above, you must have funds in your HSA. The more money you contribute every year, the more money you’ll be able to invest in assets that can boost your account balance. The growth in your account can provide you with more money to help offset the rising cost of healthcare. It is important to capitalize on contributing to your HSA to prepare for healthcare costs.
The bottom line
You can use your HSA to pay for healthcare costs such as emergency, dental, and vision expenses. The CARES Act has expanded the list of HSA-eligible items to include over-the-counter purchases, making the costs of everyday healthcare tax-deductible.
Confirm with your HSA administrator which expenses are eligible. You’ll also need to determine if you will need a letter of medical necessity from a healthcare professional.
Why trust our experts?
References
Internal Revenue Service. (2024). Face masks and other personal protective equipment to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are tax deductible.
Internal Revenue Service. (2024). Instructions for Form 2441 (2024).
Internal Revenue Service. (2024). Publication 502 (2024), medical and dental expenses.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2024). Mental illness.
This article is solely for informational purposes. This article is not professional advice concerning insurance, financial, accounting, tax, or legal matters. All content herein is provided “as is” without any representations or warranties, express or implied. Always consult an appropriate professional when you have specific questions about any insurance, financial, or legal matter.
